Free framework, workbook and summary
Find your tech debt, price it, and decide what to do about it.
A way to find technical debt, score it twice, triage it, and explain it to people who don’t read code. Includes a workbook that prices the interest in dollars.
- Fillable PDF with four worksheets, plus a print-friendly copy
- Workbook that scores, ranks and plans the payoff
- A one-page leadership summary, fillable. Free, for an email address
Send me the framework
Free download. No sales call at the end.
What happens to my email?
What we collect: your email address, and your first name if you give it.
Why: to send you the download. If you tick the box, also to send articles, new free resources and any paid products.
Your choices: unsubscribe from any email, or email us to withdraw consent or to ask us to correct or delete your data.
Concerns: email us. Full details are in our Privacy Policy.
Before you download
It’s free
You give us an email address and we send the files. The marketing emails are optional and separate. You get the download either way.
How you can use it
Use it on your own work and your clients’. Print it and fill it in. Don’t resell it, post it elsewhere or put it inside another product. Send people to this page instead.
What it is, and isn’t
General information, not legal, financial, security or other professional advice. It comes as is, with no warranty and no promised result. The examples and numbers are made up. To the extent the law allows, Eddie Gear isn’t liable for losses from using it. It’s a decision aid, not a security or engineering audit, and it doesn’t replace one.
Your data
We use your email to send the download. We don’t sell your data. You get marketing emails only if you tick the box, and every email has an unsubscribe link. Analytics cookies are set only if you accept them.
Read the full Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Tool names belong to their owners, and there’s no affiliation with any of them. Edition 1, 2026. Questions? Email us.
What’s in the download
A decision aid, not a code scanner. It tells you what to fix, what to contain and what to leave alone.
Find, score, triage, pay
A 26-page guide. A 90-minute team workshop, a quick score and a full score, and a decision for every item.
Interest, in dollars
Log items, score them, and see interest per month, payback in months and a suggested triage. It ranks the list and fits it into your debt budget.
One page for executives
The cost in dollars, the top risks, what you recommend and what you need from them. Fillable, and filled in for you in the workbook.
Every item gets one of four answers
Not every item gets a fix. Teams that can’t accept debt drown in it.
Fix now
Do it this cycle. Risk of 5, or cheap and quick to pay back.
Schedule
Plan it into the roadmap, funded from the debt budget.
Contain
Can’t fix yet. Cap the interest with guardrails and an owner.
Accept
Fixing costs more than living with it. Record it. Review later.
How it works
Find it
Run a 90-minute team workshop and check what people say against delivery data.
Score it
A two-minute quick score for everything. A full score, with dollars, for the few that matter.
Triage it
Fix now, schedule, contain or accept. A risk of 5 always goes to fix now.
Pay it down
Fund it, stop making new debt faster than you pay it, and report to leadership each quarter.
Who it’s for, and who it isn’t
For you if
Engineering leads, product leaders and the executives who fund them. On a small team, one person can wear all three hats.
Not for you if
You want a code scanner or a security audit. This is a decision aid, and it replaces neither.
A look inside
These are real pages from the download.
Questions
Is it really free?
Yes. You give us an email address and we send you the files. If you tick the box, we’ll also send you an email now and then. If you don’t tick it, you still get the files.
Is this a security audit?
No. It’s a decision aid. Decisions about security, compliance and system risk need people who know your systems.
Why price it in dollars?
Leaders fund what they can price. The workbook turns hours lost and incidents into interest per month and a payback in months. Estimates are fine if you say where they came from.
Can I use it with clients?
Yes. Use it on your own work and on your clients’. Please don’t resell it or post it elsewhere. Send people to this page instead.
How do I print it?
The download includes a print-friendly version. It’s designed for US Letter paper. On A4, choose “Fit to page.”
What do you do with my email?
We send you the files. If you ticked the box, we also send occasional emails about articles, new free resources and any paid products. You can unsubscribe from any email. The details are in the Privacy Policy.
Is this professional advice?
No. It’s general information and education. It isn’t legal, financial, security or other professional advice, and it comes with no warranty and no promised result. Check anything important against your own situation.
Are the examples real?
No. The names, numbers and scenarios marked illustrative or composite are made up to show how it works. They aren’t benchmarks, and they aren’t anyone’s results.
Who made this?
Eddie Gear. It’s drawn from years of hands-on experience, and it names no clients, on purpose.
Put a price on it before someone asks.
Send me the framework
Free download. Check your inbox after you sign up.
What happens to my email?
What we collect: your email address, and your first name if you give it.
Why: to send you the download. If you tick the box, also to send articles, new free resources and any paid products.
Your choices: unsubscribe from any email, or email us to withdraw consent or to ask us to correct or delete your data.
Concerns: email us. Full details are in our Privacy Policy.